Leader of the People’s National Congress Reform (PNCR) Aubrey Norton has accused the government of stymieing the expansion of the economy through the discrimination of private investors.
Norton made the accusation during his Republic Day address on Wednesday.
“We are aware that many local investors have been frustrated and in some cases being prevented from making investments that can create jobs and help grow this economy without depending on oil and gas. This short-sightedness and growing practice of economic discrimination must be condemned and stopped. It affects our ability to build a better, stronger, and more prosperous Guyana for all Guyanese,” he declared.
He added that the PNCR is also in receipt of information that foreign investors might be experiencing similar frustrations stemming from questionable procurement practices while adding that the country is under threat from corruption. He also made reference to Vice-President Bharrat Jagdeo’s recent interview with Vice World News where he was accused of taking bribes from Chinese businesses in exchange for local contracts.
Norton said that the government’s brushing over of the accusations is very troubling while raising concerns about potential “squandering” of Guy-ana’s oil and gas revenue.
“It concerns the PNCR that Guyana is getting so much income, but our people are getting less and at the same time the high cost of living is eating out the little that we get. On this the 52nd Anniversary of our Republic we call on the Ali regime to stop serving their elite, family and friends and ensure our people benefit from our national patrimony. Our windfall from oil and gas should not be used to make the rich richer, but rather to eradicate poverty and give our people the reason to celebrate,” he added.
He said that the country should work together to overcome and get rid of poverty and other social inequalities while calling for the government to remove the personal in-come tax. Additionally, the PNCR leader announced that “as your government in waiting, as part of the Coalition we will remove the burden of personal income tax from our people.”
“Deaths from the COVID-19 pandemic have exceeded 1,200 to date. Your personal loss and grief are not to be matters for public discourse, but it would be remiss of me not to register my dissatisfaction with the awfully poor handling of the pandemic and the general mismanagement of our health care system. This is even more so because Guyana is no longer a poor country. The installed government has been borrowing and spending lavishly… Guyanese are dying from COVID-19 twice as fast as people in the rest of the world,” the PNCR leader said.
